Sen. Bettencourt files bill to make court records more accessible, save public money

Harris County District Clerk Chris Daniel, right, speaks in favor a bill filed by Sen. Bettencourt that would allow the public to print non-certified court records at no charge. (Houston Community Newspapers)

State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Republican from north Harris County, filed a bill today that will make court records more accessible to the public and save people money.

Senate Bill 967, Bettencourt said, would allow people to access and print at no charge non-certified copies of electronic court records. They now pay 15 cents for each page they copy, and sometimes court records number in the hundreds of pages.

"If you can get government records on the internet," Bettencourt said, "you should be able to download them for free."